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Welcome to the Sacred Hearth of Dawn Black, a homesteading hearth witch from the Midwest United States.
This is my personal journal and Book of Shadows, loaded with wortcunning, kitchen witchery and Pagan parenting adventures, heavily seasoned with opinions and politics, presented here in the hopes that my experience and research will, in some way benefit you.

Recent Rants

The feast of the First Harvest is a feast of little bits. The garden is full of promise, but not full of ripe produce. We have some zucchini, an eggplant, maybe even a tomato, but hardly enough of anything to make a meal, but together, with a handful of herbs, couple eggs from the hens and some cheese from the farmer's market, they make a passable vegetable lasagna. A few other odds and ends, six green beans and a carrot, with some scraps from the lasagna noodles and we've got a hearty soup....

Gardening can be intimidating and, for those of us who do not have our own patch of dirt to tend, it can seem nearly impossible. But growing and using your own herbs is quite satisfying and can only improve our magical relationship with them. And if you don't have your own patch of dirt, many herbs grow quite satisfactorily in pots on a windowsill or a porch step. Here, I hope to list some of the easiest and most useful herbs for a start toward your magical herb garden. Obviously, this is not an...

Gardening according to the phases of the moon is an ancient practice. Those of us who garden as an expression of our spirituality and our connection with both the Earth and our ancestors may wish to incorporate the moon phases and the lunar calendar into our gardening. There are generally two things that are considered when gardening by the moon. The first is the moon phase and the second is the astrological house the moon is in. Read on to find out how they each affect your plants differently....

There are many approaches to using magick and creating a meal with magickal intent is a method embraced the Kitchen Witch. Everything in Nature has energy that can be harnessed and directed toward the manifestation of your Will, food included. Whether you prepare and consume your magical meal as a compliment to other magical work, ceremony or spellwork or as a stand-alone spell in and of itself, a little planning will go a long way toward your success. Here are some tips for preparing a magical...

In Season

The Flower moon is the full moon in the merry, merry month of May and the early flowers are blooming. Yes, some flowers have been blooming, here and there, filling our hearts with joy and promise but in May there is an abundance; on the ground and in the trees, and the air is full of their fragrance. This moon is also called the Mother's Moon and the Milk Moon and it's certainly a time for babies and the resulting lactation. This is a great time for the livestock to have babies weaning because...

Gardening can be intimidating and, for those of us who do not have our own patch of dirt to tend, it can seem nearly impossible. But growing and using your own herbs is quite satisfying and can only improve our magical relationship with them. And if you don't have your own patch of dirt, many herbs grow quite satisfactorily in pots on a windowsill or a porch step. Here, I hope to list some of the easiest and most useful herbs for a start toward your magical herb garden. Obviously, this is not an...

description: 'Willow water can be used to help root plants; not for human consumption.' preptime: '' ingredients: * 2 cups of fresh, young willow twigs, none wider than a pencil, trimmed of leaves and cut into 1 inch pieces. Any species of willow will do.\n* 1 gallon of boiling water.\n\nTools\n* Hedge trimmers or clippers\n* A gallon sized jar with a tight fitting lid\n* A label for your jar a sharpie image: '' directions: # Use the clippers to trim the willow branches to size and place...